Election Result

New Margin: LNP 10.2%

MP

Newly created seat with a notional LNP majority. The seat has no sitting MP.

Profile

Wright is a new seat that has been conjured by the redistribution to encompass an area stretching from the western Gold Coast through the remnant rural areas between Logan City and the NSW border and around to include the Lockyer Valley Council west of Ipswich. As well as the western edge of the Gold Coast, Wright includes Beaudesert, Jimboomba, Boonah, Laidley, Hatton and Helidon.

Redistribution

New seat created from the rural ends of the existing electorates of Blair and Forde, augmented by the hinterland of the four Gold Coast seats. The creation of Wright has helped Labor improve its margins in Blair and Forde.

History/Trivia

Wright is named after poet Judith Wright. Wright had originally been proposed as the name for the new central Queensland seat ahead of the 2007 election. This was contentious as the area had previously been represented by disgraced former Labor MP Keith Wright, and understandably many people drew the wrong connection to the name. The new seat was eventually named Flynn instead. The most recent redistribution again proposed a seat called Wright, but well away from central Queensland, and covering an area of southern Queensland with which Judith Wright had previously been connected.

Issues

The LNP originally selected 32 year-old barrister and Logan (previously Beaudesert) Councillor Hajnal Ban. Short in stature, Ban is well known for having visited Russia to undergo a painful procedure to increase her height. The procedure required her legs to be broken to allow new bone growth. Ban's LNP endorsement was withdrawn after her right of attorney over the assets of an ailing friend was cancelled following action by the Public Trustee. It was claimed she had been making unauthorised withdrawals from the trustee accounts though the finding is still disputed. The LNP withdrew endorsement because Ban had not informed them that the controversial proceedings would arise.

Assessment

LNP win.

2010 BALLOT PAPER (5 Candidates)

Candidate Name

Party

BUCHHOLZ, Scott

Liberal National Party of Queensland

BRIDLE, Anna

The Greens

RAMSAY, Andrew

Australian Labor Party

DEGEN, Ken

Independent

FREDERICKS, Jeremy John

Family First

CANDIDATES

Scott Buchholz

Liberal National Party

Until the election Buchholz worked as Chief of Staff for Queensland Senator Barnaby Joyce. Born and raised in Rockhampton, he has long been active organisationally in the National Party, and was the sixth candidate on the Coalition's joint ticket in 2007. He was originally listed as fifth of the LNP Senate ticket for 2010 before being brought in to replace Hajnal Ban as the LNP candidate for Wright. Buchholz was actively involved in the merging of the Liberal and National Parties in Quieensland.

52 year-old Ramsay is a long-time resident of the electorate of Wright and lives near Jimboomba. A carpenter by trade, Ramsay has spent the last twenty years working for better pay and conditions in the construction industry. He is a workplace health and safety manager for the CFMEU.

Degen has lived in the Locker valley for 17 years and has worked in various parts of the electorate through the years in the building trade. His trade background is as a carpenter and he currently holds a BSA supervisor license. He is campaigning on issues of population growth, living costs, government behaviour and government spending.